Last month, Lydia Ko, golf wunderkind that she is, jumped from the pages of sporting titles and into mainstream fashion consciousness when she appeared on the cover of Vogue Korea, back half-bared with a teaser of a tattoo, as part of the magazine’s female leaders campaign.So, perhaps it’s not so bizarre that I find myself sitting across a fully made-up and immaculately styled Ko – far removed from the golf club-wielding sporting figure we know – in a swish VIP room at Boss’s new boutique at Takashimaya Shopping Centre.The 27-year-old Korean-New Zealander is the latest ambassador of Boss Golf, the German brand’s range of golfing attire. She’s at the store, fresh from winning the HSBC Women’s World Championship at Sentosa the day before, to share her experiences with a select group of VIPs.
But having the journalist’s privilege of speaking to her one-on-one, I can’t help but ask her about the more “girlie” side of things. How does she, as a professional athlete, feel about the demands of a full-on fashion shoot, an artistic process involving countless poses that take up an entire day? “I loved it!” she says without missing a beat. “It might have been the most fun I’ve had at a shoot. It wasn’t, like, do this or that with a golf club, so it was nice to be out of that bubble.” The session thrusted Ko into new territory, one that she appreciated for the new perspectives it afforded her. She didn’t have long to wait before her next modelling gig, this time looking sultry-rebellious in Boss Golf ensembles in the great outdoors. Chalk it up to the mini skirt element of the sporting uniform juxtaposed against Singapore’s tropical setting.
Beyond the image, Ko admits that she’s not a huge fashionista. “This is as fashionable as I am probably going to get,” she says of her Boss Golf attire that she describes as chic and elegant. Not that she has the time to attend fashion shows at this time in her life. Her days revolve around professional touring and the primary concern for her outfits is that they be comfortable and perform given the particular environment.
Singapore’s tropical, 30-plus degree weather, for example, requires outfits made from light and breathable materials. In addition, notes Ko, female golfers are sometimes in positions – in the sand pit part of the course, say – where they have to stand with their legs wide apart for balance. “When you don’t feel entirely comfortable, you lose focus on your goal.”
Now, she will have her choice from a collection crafted for comfort and flexibility. The armhole designs have been modified, for example, to enhance the golfer’s swing and parts of the garment have been strategically perforated for maximum breathability. While the range offers seasonal styles – such as floral prints, gradient patterns, even houndstooth – for the more expressive player, Ko herself prefers to keep it simple for efficiency. “The main colours of the collection are black, white and caramel beige. I don’t wear much bright clothing, so it’s perfect for me. When you have colours that are simple and monotone, they are easier to match.”
Ko speaks from the perspective of one who has spent her life on golf courses. Having started the sport at the age of six, she burst onto the scene as a prodigy who broke all sorts of records. To name but a few: She was the youngest ever to be ranked world No. 1 in professional golf at the age of 17, and 10 years later, the youngest ever to be inducted into the LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) Hall of Fame. She won gold in the Paris Summer Olympics, after having nabbed the bronze and silver medals in 2020 (Tokyo) and 2016 (Rio), respectively.
“Lydia Ko always seems to pull through,” observes Benny Teo, former managing editor of Golf Vacations and Golf/Women and a keen observer of the game, of her general consistency. “She stands at 1.67m, about 10cm shorter than her rival Nelly Korda, which means she has a smaller arc to drive her balls, but she always makes up for it in the short game.” Indeed, working on the short game, or the putting, chipping and pitching required after the initial drive to direct the ball into the hole, is her suggestion for players hoping to improve. “When we have time to practice, we go to the driving range and try to hit the ball as far as we can, because it’s the cool thing to do. But sometimes, the short game, and especially the putting, is what counts. That was the key for me (winning at the recent HSBC Women’s). So, spend a little bit more time on your short game.”
It’s not all glory, however. Ko crashed in 2023, when she failed to win a single title in the 32 tournaments in the LPGA tour and for a couple of months, didn’t even shoot below par, the expected number of shots top players need to put the ball into the hole. That’s like Roger Federer hitting outside the lines – sometimes the body just loses its knack. Plagued with doubts, particularly when she had been in top form the year before with three titles and close to US$4.4 million (S$5.9 million) in winnings, Ko nevertheless bounced back in time for the Paris Olympics in 2024 with the help of her team. The experience toughened her. (It helped that she didn’t google herself, thus avoiding the negative press.)
“Because I’ve had my ups and downs – I hit my highest and lowest within a span of a year – I realise that I’m doing this for myself,” she says, of feeling pressured to perform. “I felt more expectations earlier in my career, when I was world number one. Now that I’ve gone through my fair share of lows, I don’t focus on what other people think of me. I’m at peace now; I don’t need to prove myself to anybody else. I just want to keep playing good golf because I want to keep excelling at what I do, not because I want to show results to the general public.”
Sum Of Her Parts
The final mountain for Ko to conquer is the Career Grand Slam, which means she has to win all five of golf ’s major tournaments. Only a handful of female golfers have achieved this feat. Ko is missing victories in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the US Women’s Open, but she has three more years to achieve them up until her self-declared retirement age of 30.
Ko has given herself a cut-off date to focus on other aspects of her life. She married South Korean Chung Jun, the son of the Hyundai Card vice-chairman Chung Tae-young, three years ago and is looking forward to the stability of settling down in her home in Florida. Will she miss the thrill of competing? “When I was growing up, golf was a huge part of my life; it still is now, and will always be,” says Ko. “But there’s more to life right now than when I was 15 or even 20. I’m married, and my perspective on life is different. My family is super important to me, and I have goals I want to pursue outside of the sport. I’m sure I will miss it, but I am the type that will find something else to do to fulfil myself.”
One of those goals is to resume her studies in psychology, which she did at Korea University, a private university in Seoul, for two and a half years. “I want to expand my horizons because right now, all I really know and live for is golf. Having exposure to the outside world is important. I’m excited for what’s ahead, as much as it’s exciting to be playing right now.” She can certainly shed light on mental strength development and how to stay calm under pressure. “You won’t see Lydia Ko angry or emoting negatively,” shares golf pundit Teo. And it’s the way the record-breaking champion wants to be remembered. “I would like people to remember me for who I am off the golf course and how I compose myself on it.”
Her thoughts are on the next generation – “I love seeing junior golfers coming to watch us play, because soon they will be in our shoes, doing these kind of interviews, and meeting a lot of amazing people. “Golf has given me a lot of life experiences outside of just growth as an athlete, so I would love to give back and inspire a lot of kids to become the next whoever it is. And I hope that people will remember me as that kind of player, outside of how many wins I’ve had.”